http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/010820/dcm006_2.html
Monday August 20, 8:33 am Eastern Time
SOURCE: Danone International Prize for Nutrition
WASHINGTON, Aug. 20 /PRNewswire/ --
New research shows that supplementing women of childbearing age with vitamin A
or beta-carotene reduces maternal death by 45 percent. ``These findings are
quite exciting as they could greatly impact women's health throughout the
world,'' says lead investigator, Dr. Alfred Sommer, dean of the Bloomberg
School of Public Health at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland,
USA, who will be named the 2001 laureate of the third Danone International
Prize for Nutrition. ``We are now testing these dramatic results in new,
equally large randomized controlled trials to determine the benefits of vitamin
A and related micronutrients.''
Dr. Sommer is being recognized with the international award for his
significant contributions to the field of nutrition, which span several
developing countries and have led to global policy changes. ``His commitment to
pursuing research related to blindness prevention and child survival has made a
profound impact on the lives of millions of people,'' states Dr. Barbara O.
Schneeman, chairperson of the 2001 Danone International Prize for Nutrition.
``Our goal is to promote public health worldwide, particularly through disease
prevention linked to nutrition. We congratulate Dr. Sommer on his exemplary
career and we are confident his current endeavors will prove equally fertile.''
The official announcement of Dr. Sommer as the recipient of the 2001 Danone
International Prize for Nutrition will be made on August 30, 2001 at the 17th
International Congress of Nutrition held in Vienna, Austria.
Dr. Sommer and his research team discovered the widespread prevalence of
vitamin A deficiency in the 1970s, a condition that largely concerns developing
countries. Through his studies in Africa he demonstrated that most
measles-associated pediatric blindness was related to low vitamin A status. He
also recognized that mild vitamin A deficiency dramatically increases childhood
death, particularly from reduced resistance to infectious diseases.
``Dr. Sommer's life-long commitment to the study of vitamin A has led to a
global commitment on the parts of over 70 countries to address the devastating
consequences of vitamin A deficiency,'' said Michael R. Bloomberg, Chairman of
the Board of Trustees of Johns Hopkins University. ``Due to his efforts,
control of vitamin A deficiency is included in the Declaration of the Rights of
Children, as well as the Plan of Action of the World Food Congress and I can
think of no one more deserving of this important honor.''
``Our vitamin A intervention programs have saved the lives of more than two
million children and prevented another one million children from going
permanently blind,'' Dr. Sommer estimates. ``But there's still much work to be
done. Millions of children go blind or die each year unnecessarily due to
vitamin A deficiency.''
According to Dr. Sommer, although vitamin A capsules are extremely
inexpensive, the delivery system remains complicated and costly. His present work
continues to expand our understanding of the consequences of vitamin A and
related micronutrient deficiencies and identify optimal control strategies.
The Danone name stands for innovation and commitment to health and
nutrition. The Danone International Prize for Nutrition expresses the Danone
Company's determination to encourage more nutrition research and reward
innovations that advance the knowledge of the link between diet and public
health. The prize was created in 1997 with the scientific support of the
Foundation for Medical Research (Fondation pour la Recherche Medicale, France),
and totals 120,000 Euro (approximately $100,000 US dollars). It is awarded
every two years to a researcher or a group of researchers whose work on human
nutrition has made a major contribution to global public health. The Danone
Group is the parent to The Dannon Company in the United States.
SOURCE: Danone International Prize for Nutrition